Nets Starting Five 10/15/13

[box]SI– 2013-14 NBA Preview: Will new-look Nets win Atlantic?

One year ago, the Nets were highly paid underperformers who sleepwalked through their first-round loss to the depleted Bulls. But the arrival of Garnett and the hiring of fellow future Hall of Famer Jason Kidd promises to caffeinate the entire organization.[/box]

[box] ESPN – KG on sitting vs. C’s: Not my decision

“It wasn’t my decision. So that’s where I’m going to leave that,” said Garnett, who will sit out the game for rest. “I am trying to be as positive as I can be. This is not up to me, and I’m being positive. I’m trying to listen and go with the plan that was laid out for me, and being positive with that, so I’m trusting [Nets coach] Jason [Kidd] and what he has in store for myself and I’m going to embrace it.”

“I just feel like everyday you have a chance to better your craft, and I’d like to be a part of that. You just don’t get to 18 years and just show up and ‘ta-da.’”[/box]

[box]NYPOST – Nets Rewind: Finding time for Teletovic

It was an interesting experiment: Teletovic on the floor – often guarding Evan Turner – playing next to a pair of bigs to give the Nets a ton of size on the floor. It didn’t necessarily work out all that well defensively, but Teletovic showed he’s plenty capable of scoring, finishing with 21 points to go along with seven rebounds and five assists in just under 29 minutes, including hitting five 3-pointers.

“When you play with KG, Brook, Reggie, Dray, because everybody’s tall, we can switch,” Teletovic said. “Then Brook will jump out, and they will give me time to jump over the screen. It’s just a good group. A very good group.”[/box]

[box]NEWSDAY – Kevin Garnett finds kindred spirit in Nets’ Reggie Evans

“He’s going to be the engine that’s going to drive this team at both ends of the court before we could really see how we’re going to reach our full potential,” Pierce said. “So you know, it’s up to us with the guys that we have out there to continue to get better, to continue to understand what we’re trying to accomplish each and every night.”

“Stuff like that takes time. I don’t like the fact that we are giving up a lot of turnovers. That comes through a test of continuity. I think the better we know each other, some of those turnovers will obviously come down. But those are signs your team is getting better.”[/box]

[box]NY DAILYNEWS – Lawrence Frank to be mastermind behind Nets defensive strategy

Lawrence returned to the Nets sideline Monday night after a one-game hiatus because of a family medical issue. He missed Saturday’s defensive debacle against the Pistons, who burned the Nets for 50 points in the paint, with point guard Will Bynum penetrating at will and Andre Drummond finishing easily at the rim.

The goal, Garnett said, is to become a top-three defense. It’s lofty considering the personnel.

“We’re still trying to learn (the defense),” said Garnett, who was with the Celtics when Frank was an assistant in 2010-11. “We’re having a lot of stuff thrown at us. Some of us know some of the schemes because we got to experience Lawrence Frank. Some of us haven’t. Some of us this is new things for us.”[/box]